Laying Down the Groove – A New Session at Amen
It’s been a groove-filled week here at Amen Studio in Bristol, and we’re buzzing to share some highlights from a recent online session drummer project that’s still got our heads nodding. The track? “With Music On Repeat.” The vibe? Soulful, hopeful, with just the right dash of vintage funk. Think Bruno Mars with a time machine, but parked firmly in 2025. You can check out his style here — it’s the closest we can get to describing the swagger this track carries.
For this drum recording session, we kept things old-school with a modern twist — starting with the heartbeat of the track: the drums. The Ludwig Super Classic 1965 Vintage kit was the perfect choice. With its 22″ bass drum, 13″ and 16″ toms, this setup brought warmth, punch, and soul. You can read more about the classic setup here.
Topping off the sound was a Ludwig Supraphonic snare from the 1970s. This chrome beauty has powered more hit records than we can count, and once again, it delivered the goods with just the right crack and depth — the kind of tone that makes a studio drummer for hire stand out in any session.
Cymbals, Tuning & Tone
The cymbals for this session added sparkle and subtlety in all the right places. We went with a silky mix of Zildjian — a 15″ Kerope hi-hat, a punchy 16″ A Fast Crash, and a 22″ K Constantinople Medium Ride that shimmered beautifully over the groove.
Tuning was key — and that’s where the Tune Bot came in. The snare was tuned to G, with the toms sitting comfortably in A and D. The drums were fitted with Remo Ambassador Vintage Coated heads for warmth, control, and that vintage feel. (More about those here).
To keep the vibe authentic, we gave the snare a medium tuning with some tasteful muffling — not too much, just enough to keep the ring musical. Kick drum? Punchy, minimal tone. The toms were tuned to sit right in the mix and gently muffled for a clean, focused sound. This kind of tonal control is what makes session drummers for hire so valuable in a wide range of genres.
Mic’d to Perfection – Capturing the Performance
Capturing the sound meant choosing the right blend of mics and preamps. We used a dream line up:
- Coles 4038 ribbon mics for warmth and roundness (Coles)
- Lauten Audio Horizons for rich tube character (Lauten)
- Beyerdynamic MC 930s for clean overhead detail (Beyerdynamic)
- Heil PR31 BWs for reliable mid-range punch (Heil Sound)
Mic preamps? A killer combo of Daking Audio IV and Focusrite ISA 828, giving us that classic analogue sheen with enough flexibility to shape every hit. We even sent the toms through a Drawmer MQ2 EQ, adding a touch of Motown magic — a favourite trick among top session drummers chasing that classic soul flavour.
The Take That Nailed It – And What We Learned
The star take was the last-but-one — always the golden one. That’s when everything locked in: the swing, the pocket, the pulse. The hi-hats had to sit just right to keep that subtle 70s groove — and they did, with a bit of manual flex applied where needed to maintain feel without losing energy.
We also kept things natural in the mix: no drum samples, just good playing, quality gear, and careful engineering. Getting the right snare compression was a bit finicky, but worth the effort to keep things organic.
At Amen Session Drummer, we love bringing tracks to life for artists around the world. Whether you’re looking for online session drums, a remote session drummer to match your vision, or simply the best session drummer for your genre — we’ve got you. We take pride in being the kind of session drummer you can contact to bring musicality, timing, and vibe every time.